reasonable and honest: although wee might iustly pleade the great hinderance and damage which wee haue and doe sustaine in our estates besides the daily feare of our liues by reason of the insufferable Insolency of the Indians being as it were in a posture of continnuall warre by reason whereof we cannot inioy our land in peace according to our pattent and by that means are much disinabled: yet notwithstanding to avoide all differences that may arise betwixt our moste Honnorable Patroons and our selues wee are willing for this present yeare as an acknowledgment of the tenths to pay vnto your Lorde shippe or your officer deputed fiftie scipple of peas and twentie fiue of wheate and soe wee haue agreed with your Committees and wee question not in Consideration of our weake and poore Condition your Honnorable Lordeshippe will accept thereof and wee shall remaine your Humble Seruants to Command the Inhabitants of Vlishing written by order of the Towne by mee.

ffrom Vlishing

this 29th of July 1656.

EDWART HEART.** CLERICUS.

Honored S':

LETTER FROM THE TOWN OF HEMPSTEAD TO STUYVESANT.

Yours wee received Bearing Date the 4th of July 1656 wherein you demand the tenths Which iff they bee due according to Covenant then wee are ready to pay them iff there bee any deputed to receave them according to Covenant. But we know off no General peace was made with the Indians till this year. S' wee allsoe doe expect that you will make good vnto vs such

** Edw. Hart was one of the original incorporators of Flushing, the others were Thomas Farrington, John Townsend, Thos. Stiles, Thos. Saull, John Marston, Robt. Field, Thomas Applegate, Thomas Beddard, Lawrence Dutch, John and Wm. Lawrence, Wm. Thorne, Henry Sautell, Wm. Pigeon, Michael Milleard, Robt. Firman and John Hicks.-B. F.

Damages as you by Covenant have bound your selffe to make good vnto vs.
Leaves & subscribe our selves yours

Swee take our

JOHN

The mark of

STICKLAND.*

ORDINANCE RENEWING AND AMENDING THE ORDINANCE AGAINST THE IMPORTATION OF ARTICLES OT CONTRABAND, PASSED AUG. 11, 1656.

(See Laws of N. N. p. 236.)

PATENT FOR LAND IN MESPATH, L. I.

Petrus Stuyvesant, Director-General etc., and the Council testify and declare, that to-day, date underwritten, we have given and granted to Jan Catjou a lot, situate in Mespat, being bounded on the North side of by Jacob Lube and on the South side by Roloeff Jansen, the butcher,

* The charter was granted to Hempstead Novbr. 16, 1644 (Laws of New Netherland, p. 42). At the expiration of ten years to begin from the day, the first general peace with the Indians was concluded, they were to pay a tenth like Flushing. John Stickland is the only original patentee among the above subscribers, Robert Fordham, John Ogden, John Carman, John Lawrence and James Wood were the others.-B. F.

stretching along the meadow South East and North West, in width along the border of the meadow thirty-two rods, into the woods in a S. E. and N. W. line in length four hundred and sixty-eight and three-fourth rods, on both sides, in the woods or thirty-two rods wide, containing twenty-five morgens, with the express condition and stipulation, etc.

Done at Fort Amsterdam in New Netherland, this 21st of August, 1656.

JUDGMENT IN A CASE OF THE TOWN OF GRAVESEND AGAINST ANTHONY JANSEN FOR TRESPASS. Monday 21st of August 1656. Extraordinary Session at Fort Amsterdam in N. N.

Having heard the debates pro and contra and examined the evidence the Director-General and Council find, that the complaints of the Magistrates of Gravesend are unfounded, because the ocular inspection, made by the Director and Council on the 25th of June, has proved, that the people of Gravesend without the justification of law have fenced in a part of Anthony Jansen's land and the meadow of William Bredenbent and placed their posts and rails not in conformity with the consent of the Director-General and Council upon the land granted them by their patent, but, as it has been stated, partly upon the land of Anthony Jansen and through the meadow of William Bredenbent. The Director-General and Council therefore, by their resolution, ordered, that the inhabitants of the said village remove the posts and rails put up by them from the land in question and return and leave the land not belonging to them in statu quo prius, as directed by the resolution of the 24th of June to which reference is here made. Although at the request of the said Magistrates this order has been in so far modified by the Director-General and Council, that for the prevention of damage to the grass and other crops the posts and rails should remain until further order and the gathering of the harvest, yet, as the inhabitants of the said village without the knowledge and against the order and intention of the Director-General and Council have let their calves and other cattle graze on the meadow in question, which is proved by credible witnesses and not denied by the Magistrates, thereby causing and inducing Anthony Jansen, as he declares, to let his cattle also run along the strand upon the same meadow, so that the subsequent disorders were not occasioned by him, but by the people of the said village, who by their own authority and in contempt of the supreme government have acted as parties and judges in the matter, as well in carrying off Anthony Jansen's cattle, as in making hay from and on land not belonging to them, the Director-General and Council to maintain their own authority and the administration of law and justice find themselves compelled to detain the said Magistrates, until they shall give due satisfaction to the Director-General and Council for the contempt shown to their authority, returned the land unlawfully fenced in in statu quo prius and paid the costs and mises of law. Meanwhile Anthony Jansen and Jaques Corteljouw are requested and charged to gather the mown hay at the expense of the Director-General and Council for the future disposal thereof. Done at Fort Amsterdam in N. N. date as above.

P. STUYVESANT. NICASIUS DE SILLE, LA MONTAGNE.

Whereas we, the Magistrates and delegates of the village of Gravesend, by order of the Director-General and Council have in behalf of the said village been arrested to satisfy your Honors' orders and judgment or in default thereof to give bail, are unable to do either at present,

because we can find no bondsmen here and whereas on account of the harvesting time we shall be considerably injured in our private affairs, therefore for ourselves individually and for the rest of the inhabitants of the said village, our neighbors, we hereby bind and engage ourselves to obey and carry out the sentence and order of the Director-General and Council and to comport ourselves, as we have done before, as good and faithful subjects. In witness whereof we have signed this at Fort Amsterdam in N. N. the 224 of August 1656.

As they stood up to sign the foregoing document, they requested that they might first have a copy thereof, which was granted and a day or two later they appeared again before the Council.

Tuesday, the 29th of August 1656 at Fort Amsterdam.

Present in Council General Petrus Stuyvesant, Councillors Nicasius de Sille and La Montagne.

On Saturday last the Magistrates and inhabitants of the village of Gravesend were shown their boundaries pursuant to their patent and other title deeds, beginning at the mouth of the kil, the west side of which is nearest to Coney Island, where their boundaries begin, stretching thence pursuant to their patent along Robert Pennoyer's and Anthony Jansen's lands, thence north to a point in an old Indian field. These are their bounds on the west side, and the Magistrates acquiesced in this decision, but requested that for the present year they might have the mown hay, because they needed it very much and, if the inhabitants of the said village should be deprived of the hay made by them, they feared to loose their cattle for want of forage or be compelled to sow no winter grain this year in order to keep their cattle by these means with the second crop. After further consideration hereof the Director-General and Council have allowed and granted the inhabitants of the said village, as they herewith allow and grant, to carry away and use the hay already made on condition of their paying therefor an fair equivalent to the Director-General and Council to lighten the expenses incurred in this matter, except only the hay made between the two outermost hooks, which the Director-General and Council give for this year to Anthony Jansen of Salee and nothing more. In regard to the balance of the grass not yet cut the Director-General and Council consent and order, that the same remain for this year for the behoof of Jacques Corteljouw to winter his cattle.

Further, in case the hay granted as above should not be sufficient for the village of Gravesend to bring their cattle through the winter, they are allowed to cut and harvest this year the balance of the grass not yet cut in the nearest meadows east of the Stroom kil.

Thus done in Council at Fort Amsterdam in N. N. Date as above.

ORDER FOR A RESURVEY OF THE Boundaries OF JANSEN'S AND PENNOYER'S PATENT. 23d of August 1656 at Fort Amsterdam.

Present in Council General Petrus Stuyvesant and the Councillors Nicasius de Sille and La Montagne.

Upon the urgent request of the Magistrates of Gravesend, assisted by Sir Henry Moody, Bart, it was resolved to send the following order to Jacques Corteljouw at Najeek:

Jacques Corteljouw is hereby requested and authorized to survey once more with a compass, according to the tenor of their patents the lands of Anthony Jansen and Robert Pennoyer to the extent of as many morgens as covered by the patents and to place marks at every corner; also the hay or meadowland of Bredenbent. After he has done this, he is to draw a line from the mouth of the kil, to the eastermost point of Anthony Jansen's land, where it touches the westernmost point of Robert Pennoyer's; this line is according to the patent the boundary line of Gravesend; he is to do all to the best of his knowledge, without favor, dissimulation or regard of persons, also to gather the hay and leave it in hocks on the place until our arrival. You will be paid for your work. Date as above.

ORDINANCE EXPLAINING THE ORDINANCE OF AUGUST 11th, SO FAR AS THE ANCHORAGE GROUNDS IN THE PORT OF NEW AMSTERDAM ARE CONCERNED, PASSED AUGUST 24, 1656.

(See Laws of N. N. p. 248.)

PATENT FOR LAND ON LONG ISLAND.

Petrus Stuyvesant, Director-General etc., and the Council testify and declare, that to-day, date underwritten, we have given and granted to Hendrick Jansen from Jeveren, a piece of land, situate on Long Island near the Hellegate bordering to the West on Lieven Jansen, to the East on Adrian Dircksen, in width along the kil or the valley stretching W. N. W. and E. S. E. fifty rods, going into the woods W. S. W. to a large thicket, in length on both sides three hundred rods, along the said thicket fifty rods, containing twenty-five morgens.

(Nota: The aforesaid parcel of land was allotted to and surveyed for Jerian Fradel, but as he has sold his interest to the aforesaid Hendrick Jansen, this patent is made out in his name at the request of all parties concerned.) With the express condition and stipulation, etc.

Done at Fort Amsterdam in N. N. this 25th of August 1656.

ORDINANCE REGULATING THE FEES PAYABLE AT THE CUSTOM-HOUSE AND PUBLIC STORE AT NEW AMSTERDAM, PASSED SEPT. 6, 1656.

(See Laws of N. N. p. 249.)

REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS APPOINTED TO INQUIRE INTO SOME DIFFERENCES BETWEEN INHABITANTS OF MIDDELBURGH, (NEWTOWN) L. I.

We, the undersigned Commissioners, deputed by the Honble Director-General and Council of New-Netherland to settle to the best of our ability the differences between the Magistrates of New Middelburgh and Thomas Stevensen, have proceeded to the bouwery or plantation of the said